


My Landlord is a(n) XXX

by IloveHajishun111



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Blood and Violence, Dark Theme, Description of mental abuse, Ferdie will bring him happy ending, I swear this is not angst, M/M, Mental Disorder!Hubert, Psychological Trauma, Psychological abused!Hubert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-06
Updated: 2020-01-06
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:36:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22148020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IloveHajishun111/pseuds/IloveHajishun111
Summary: Ferdinand finally managed to break free from his father and moved into a house with a man named Hubert. But unknown to him, this handsome landlord of his hid a secret that could change the course of Ferdinand's life forever.Or it might be known as the Ferdibert ver psychological horror/ romance
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Comments: 4
Kudos: 48





	My Landlord is a(n) XXX

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This fic contains mental abuse and graphic description of violence.  
> Thank you @Medishurahan for helping me with grammar correction >.<  
> I'm sorry for anyone who read the fic yesterday, I forgot to put a summary for it TT^TT

_“If you do not change your mind then I have no choice but to cancel your tuition and cut off your monthly allowance. You are on your own now, Ferdinand."_

That was his father's ultimatum for him at the Aegir Christmas party a week ago. Since he was the only heir of the fabled Aegir family, who owned nearly half of the Fódlan's stocks and only second to the Hresvelg, he, Ferdinand Aegir, was destined to take over the corporation in the future if not for his admirable confession to his Father that he wished to enroll in Law School and become a lawyer. 

Now a 22 years old Ferdinand found himself skimming through a pile of newspapers looking for a new dwelling place since he would be kicked out of his dorm soon, thanks to his Father. Luckily, Ferdinand had some savings left in his bank account plus a generous amount of his Mother's funds that she just transferred to him, enough for him to live free of worry for at least until the semester ended. But an easy life was not what Ferdinand wanted; he wanted to prove to his father that the path he had chosen was the right one and Ferdinand would not need him nor his money to get there.

Turned out it was easier said than done. All the apartments he came across were either too expensive for university students like him (he had to save up for tuition next semester), or in a rather unsafe condition to live in. 

Ferdinand had thought about asking his friends for help but none of them had any spare room available - Dorothea was sharing her apartment with her new girlfriend, Caspar and Linhardt just moved in together and Bernadetta...well, it would be inappropriate for him to live alone with an underage, innocent Bernie - not that her parents would allow such things to happen anyway.

So what Ferdinand looked for in a roommate was a male, single if possible, and not too noisy so he could focus on his entrance exam.

After surfing through dozens of ads, Ferdinand finally found it, his perfect, almost non-existence roommate, or rather, housemate - a single man living alone in his two-floored house just fifteen minutes from his campus. 

Without a second of consideration, Ferdinand whipped out his phone and gave the man a call. No one picked it up, as it should be on a Wednesday afternoon when the landlord must be out working. 

But who was Ferdinand if not persistent? So, he hopped in his car - a birthday present from his Father that luckily wasn’t taken from him - and drove to the address on the article.

The place was even nicer than he imagined. Its style was a combination of ancient structures with a touch of modern decoration in the choice of its paint - a darker color theme compared to the neighboring houses and a black chimney.

 _The owner has great taste_ , Ferdinand thought as he descended from his car and walked through the open gate. He pressed the bell and waited. 

Five minutes passed and no one came to open the door for him.

Ferdinand let out a long sigh. As he was about to turn on his heels, there was a rustling sound of a lock being unlatched and a few seconds later, a man flung the door wide open. Ferdinand immediately whipped around, donning his best smile.

As his gaze landed on the man, Ferdinand all but sucked in a breath.

The man was tall, taller than him, he was already 180 cm for god's sake, and pale as a ghost. Had the man ever stepped outside?

Half of his face was covered by his overgrown veil of black hair; only one peridot-colored eyes visible under his glasses, which was staring intensely at him, observing him. Besides that piercing eye, which Ferdinand found himself staring at a bit too much, were the sharpest cheekbones he had ever seen in his life.

"May I help you with something?" The man asked in a sexy bedroom voice that Ferdinand found his cheeks reddening just by listening.

"I..." He swallowed hard, stuttering, "I saw your ad for a roommate and I am also in need of a place to live, so here I am."

The man's brow arched a little and as Ferdinand noticed, his gaze drifted down to his lips before bringing it back to lock his gaze at him, "I regret to say that I am no longer looking for a roommate. I forgot to put that article down."

"What!" Ferdinand exclaimed, "So I drove all the way here for nothing?"

"I'm afraid so." The man said calmly.

Ferdinand couldn't help but bite his lower lip, brows knitting together. For the first time in his life, the proud Aegir heir felt defeated, "I thought that I finally found a place to live before getting kicked out of my dorm..."

He heard the man sucked in a breath but his mind was too occupied at the moment, burdening itself with the quest for house hunting with so little time left. Sighing, Ferdinand quietly bid the landlord goodbye without even looking at the man and quickly turned to leave. 

Two steps on the pathway later, a low and hoarse voice called after him, "Wait!"

Ferdinand turned his head around to see the weirdly attractive man signaling his head at him, "Do you still want to look at the room?"

"Sure!" Ferdinand donned his brightest smile at the man, who flinched a little upon seeing it and slipped through the open space between the man and the door to enter the house.

"This way." The man led him up the staircase towards one of the bedrooms at the far right of the house until they stopped in front of a wooden door. The man opened it with a twist on the knob and Ferdinand eagerly peaked inside.

It was smaller than his dorm room but was neat and cozy. Ferdinand had nothing to complain about since a beggar like him couldn't be too picky anymore. At least, this little room was far better than sleeping in a cheap apartment filled with pests and rats.

"I love it." He said with a whip of his long hair - an old habit whenever he was happy. He noticed the man's gaze followed every movement of his auburn locks, from when they arched in the air until they cascaded onto his back, how they sway when he walked. At last, that lime-green eye found Ferdinand’s again.

"My last roommate moved out not long ago. I tried to keep everything in its place." The man said, adjusting his glasses a little, "If it's to your taste--"

"Yes, it is." Ferdinand interrupted before he could finish his sentence, moving a bit too close to his soon-to-be landlord, "Please let me move in. I promise I will be the best roommate you've ever had."

The man was a little taken aback by his over-enthusiasm - pinkness colored the tips of his ears at their sudden closeness - but he recovered quickly and the green eye was back to its normal calmness, "So be it. See to it if you can move within this week."

"I will go home and start packing right away." Ferdinand dashed towards the door, jumping out with joy, before he stopped mid-way and turned back to the bewildered man, "Since we will be housemates soon, an introduction is in order. My name is Ferdinand Aegir. And yours is?"

"Hubert." The man said, eye flashing mysteriously under his glasses, "Just call me Hubert."

\--

And just like that, in the morning after, Ferdinand loaded his endless suitcases and boxes, mostly filled with designer clothes and law books, into his new room under the amused smile of his landlord. 

Ferdinand felt the man’s eyes glued on him the entire time he bounced around the house, enthusiastically unboxing his belongings and even daring to suggest a few changes to the decoration of his new shared house. Most of the time, Hubert just nodded his head with no objection. Save for once when Ferdinand, being his friendly self, asked to visit his landlord's room; Hubert actually snapped at him, telling him not to step foot into his bedroom at all cost. Ferdinand had to swear to his favorite horse’s name that he would not do so to get the man off his back. 

He could be too boisterous sometimes.

When it came to the rent, Hubert was surprisingly flexible despite his misanthropic behavior earlier - he did not require Ferdinand to pay any deposit upfront nor did he set due for his rent, meaning Ferdinand could pay him whenever he felt like it. 

“Oh, you are too kind, Hubert.” Ferdinand beamed, mustering all his will not to surge forward and hug the man, “I will pay you in time. You have my words for it.”

“You...you’re welcome.” Hubert stuttered, averting his gaze from Ferdinand. Even though half of his face was covered by his hair, Ferdinand could spot a tinge of redness on the man’s cheeks. 

Ferdinand swore this discovery about the man didn’t turn him on, not at all. And if he spent the first night in his new room dreaming about pinning his landlord on the bed, teasing and coaxing more lewd expressions from the man, that was just the effect of him not getting laid for so long.

Yes, that was all.

\--

Ferdinand's new life started wonderfully. 

Hubert was kind enough to introduce him to his old friend, Sylvain, who owned a convenience store a few blocks from their house and just happened to look for a new assistant since his last employee just quit.

So just within two weeks, he, the heir of the Aegir family, not only managed to break free from his Father’s control and moved in with a housemate, but also had a job that would help him pay the rent.

For once, Ferdinand Aegir was the one taking the wheel of his own life and no one else.

\--

Hubert, his new housemate, was a man of many mysteries - someone he ought to be suspicious of, as his friends stated - but to Ferdinand, Hubert was a fairly easy person to share a house with. 

The man was rarely out of his room. 

The first week he moved in, Ferdinand thought he was living alone in this big house, save for the few occasions he bumped into Hubert, when the brooding man went to the kitchen to fetch himself a cup of coffee and then disappeared into his room again.

Ferdinand was utterly disappointed. Here he thought he would have many chances to get closer to his handsome landlord now that they were living under one roof. Because try as he might, hose wet dreams continued to haunt his sleep.

On the weekend of his first week living here, Ferdinand decided to burst into Hubert's room, despite swearing that he would never do so, all to have a social conversation with the man. And as he expected, Hubert yelled at him upon seeing Ferdinand.

“I told you not to come in here!” 

Ferdinand ignored the man’s reprimand as his eyes took in the room that he was not supposed to enter. It was simply decorated and surprisingly big compared to the rest of the house. The desk Hubert was sitting at was part of a study room, adjacent to his actual bedroom and divided by a black mahogany door. The study room was packed with hundreds of books - on the shelf and also laying around on the floor - and it smelled nice, like a mixture of fresh paper and ink. 

Finally, Ferdinand’s eyes landed on the man himself, who glared at him under his glasses with an expression very similar to an angry possum.

“Apologize. You haven’t left your room for days so I have to make sure my landlord doesn’t end up dead on his bed.” Ferdinand retorted, earning him a sneer from Hubert.

“As you can see, I am quite busy at the moment.” Hubert chided and turned his attention back to his old school typewriter. 

Curious, Ferdinand stepped behind the man to peek at what he was typing.

"Wait, you are H.V?" Ferdinand yelled as he skimmed the half-written script on Hubert's desk.

"Yes, I am." Hubert, having unable to remove Ferdinand out of his study room, reluctantly replied while his fingers continue to dance on the keyboard.

"Are you saying that I am sharing a house with the most famous mystery writer of this era, H.V, all this time?" Ferdinand exclaimed excitedly, his amber eyes flicker with admiration. 

H.V, the up-and-coming mystery writer, had caught the attention of many readers with his first novel, 'The Reluctant Killer". After the release of that novel, he became the most highly pursued writer of all time, as his books were sold out just a few hours after they were on sale and were constantly re-released due to high demand. Ferdinand was proud that he had collected all of H.V's books that were ever published.

"No need to be that dramatic. I write because I like doing so." Hubert sighed and rubbed his tempers. He looked like a man on his deathbed. Ferdinand wanted to shower the man with more praises but judging by the heavy bags under his eyes, he knew Hubert had not slept for what, since the last time they saw each other in the kitchen, which was four days ago.

"When was the last time you slept?" Ferdinand asked worriedly.

"It's none of your concern." Hubert snapped but the tiredness in his tone made his scolding almost non-threatening.

"It is now," Ferdinand said firmly and before the man could object, he already dragged the slim-to-the-bone writer to his feet and towards his bedroom through the adjacent door.

Ferdinand placed the taller man down to his bed and tugged him inside his blanket. And despite the dagger-liked glare aimed at him, Ferdinand reached out to take his landlord”s glasses off, "Well, sleep now, Hubert. I can't have my favorite writer works himself to death before he completes the next volume of ‘The Reluctant Killer,’ can I?"

Hubert, with his glasses taken off, looked somewhat vulnerable and soft, unlike his usual gloomy self. This discovery brought a smile onto Ferdinand's lips.

"What's so funny?" Hubert inquired with a frown.

"Ah, nothing!" Ferdinand mumbled, blushing, "It's just that...you look more handsome without your glasses on."

"Is that so?" Hubert asked with a quirk of his brow. The lime-green eye seemed to bore a hole inside his soul.

 _This is awkward_ , Ferdinand thought, trying to ignore the racing of his heart.

"I...I'll leave you to your sleep. Good night, Hubert." Ferdinand stuttered and without waiting for the man's answer, he rushed out of Hubert's room and quickly slipped into his own.

\--

Ferdinand found Hubert walking in the kitchen the day later looking more human than he was last night. The bags under his eyes had faded dramatically and some color had returned to his pale cheeks.

"Good morning, Hubert!" Ferdinand beamed as soon as the man's eye landed on him, "Sleep well?"

"I...Yes." Hubert, who seemed to just snap out of his stupor, nodded, "I feel better. Thank you."

"Do you want anything to drink?" Ferdinand surged out of his seat and walked to the counter, "Tea? Coffee?"

"Coffee, please," Hubert replied at the same time sitting down on the opposite chair.

"Ah, I see you like coffee, right? You have many of the same coffee stock in here." Ferdinand took out a can of coffee and started to warm up the coffee maker. To be fair, brewing coffee and making tea was all he could do in the kitchen anyway. Most of the time, Ferdinand lived off of fast food and canned soups. Except for today he managed to whip out an edible omelette without burning the pan.

"Yes, I prefer coffee." he heard Hubert said behind his back.

"And I prefer tea. I find coffee lacks the elegant flavor that tea has." Ferdinand placed the cup of newly made coffee down in front of the black-haired man, "We should have tea time sometimes"

Hubert brought the cup to his lips, and Ferdinand had to avert his eyes not to stare too much at the way the man licked his lips while drinking his coffee. 

After a few minutes, Hubert's voice echoed in his ear, gently and entrancingly, "Yes, we should sometimes."

\--

After the first morning together, in which Hubert found out about Ferdinand’s tragically non-existent cooking skill (he glanced at his omelette!), his landlord forbade him, with a mocking sneer, from ever coming to the kitchen again, except for making tea and coffee, to which Ferdinand reluctantly agreed. 

But to Ferdinand’s utter surprise, as he came down the stairs ready in the morning after, there was a delicious smell coming from the kitchen. Ferdinand’s stomach roared at the sight of a perfectly cooked omelette on the kitchen table, Goddess knew how many days had gone by when Ferdinand could eat a homemade meal like this again.

His eyes landed on a note sitting beside the plate with rather nice handwriting on it.

_“This is for you so you won’t set my kitchen on fire - Hubert.”_

“Oh you terrible man!” Ferdinand exclaimed, though he couldn’t help a smile forming at the corner of his mouth.

And from that day on, there was a plate of different kind of breakfast was prepared for him every morning, right before he stormed down the staircase to start his day.

To show his gratitude for his ‘chef’, Ferdinand barged into Hubert's room more often than before, mostly to drag the man to bed or invite him to tea time with him. The majority of the time, Hubert only let out an annoyed groan but eventually complied. 

Despite his gloomy look, Hubert was intelligent--he must be since he was the one who wrote those novels--and surprisingly stubborn. Ferdinand had arched his brows more than once during their first tea time when he heard the sharpness in Hubert's tone about Fódlan's current political crisis.

"You cannot be serious. A rebellion is not the right method, it would shatter all that we’ve built for the last century. We should be more benevolent in our approach, and we must show the people the right path to follow."

"Righteousness will get you nowhere," Hubert said sharply.

"At least we wouldn’t spill more innocent blood than there already has been throughout Fódlan’s history. That is why I want to be a lawyer, to bring justice to those corrupt governors in accordance with the laws." Ferdinand objected fiercely. 

"An admirable goal. Good luck with that." Hubert smirked teasingly.

"And I will achieve it, thank you very much."

They ended their tea times in rather acrimonious terms, but everything went back to normal the next time when they saw each other in the kitchen.

\--

A month since Ferdinand settled in with his new housemate, Hubert asked him in one of their weekly tea times, happening all thanks to Ferdinand’s persistence, “Now that you are all set, do you ever wish to move out, Ferdinand?”

Ferdinand was taken off-guard by that question, an unknown ache piercing through his heart, “Why do you ask? Do you not...like me here?”

“No, that’s not what I meant.” Hubert quickly explained, his voice unsecured, “Just just that you needed a place to live back then, but now you’re on your feet again. Maybe you will find someplace better than here.”

“Oh silly you.” Ferdinand heaved out a laugh, relief washed over him, “Your place is perfect. How could I find a better one than here? You will surely die without me forcing you to eat and sleep. And not to mention, I am quite enjoying the _company_.”

A delightful blush painted across Hubert’s cheeks as the writer quickly pretended to sip the coffee in his cup.

“Say.” Hubert began, successfully dragging Ferdinand out of his thought, which involved making his landlord blush harder with his mouth, “Would like to be the first one to read my finished draft for the next volume of ‘A Reluctant Killer’?”

“It would be an honor!” Ferdinand exclaimed, nearly jumped out of his seat at that offer.

\--

Hubert had proven to be not a normal man like Ferdinand thought. The more time they spent together, the more Ferdinand noticed that Hubert might have grown up in a rather wealthy family by the graceful way he carried himself in conversation, his rather polite speech and his obsession with all things clean - more than once he had scolded Ferdinand to keep his room tidy. But Ferdinand was attracted to the brooding man nonetheless, if not more than he told himself not to.

His eyes usually scanned the dimly lit living room for that dark figure to appear within his sight, and he often made up reasons to knock on the man's room just to talk to him a little. More than once, Ferdinand found himself staring at Hubert's lips as he sat opposite from him in their tea times. Those actions only added to his sexual frustration.

And by the look Hubert gave him one day when Ferdinand walked out of the bathroom, half-naked with only a towel wrapped around his most sensitive part, Ferdinand was 99% sure that Hubert wanted him just the same, if not more. 

Only Goddess knew what that look had done to Ferdinand, a look with so much carnal desire that it kept him up all night jerking himself up to the thought of elegant fingers roaming along his body.

 _Enough with this torment,_ Ferdinand thought. Who was Ferdinand if not brazen?

\--

Ferdinand planned to make the first move on his gloomy yet handsome landlord the next day but a surprise visit from his friends made his plan go astray. Well, almost.

It started with a jest that quickly escalated into a challenge when Caspar suddenly voiced his request to visit Ferdinand's shared house. The others all agreed to Caspar’s suggestion. So here he was, standing in front of Hubert's house with a dreaded expression, hoping that Hubert was not home at the moment.

But fate always loved to oppose him. Hubert was, in fact, the one who opened the door for them. Had Hubert ever been out of the house though?

"Hubert." Ferdinand smiled upon seeing the man, wishing his smile might lighten Hubert's mood a little, "Do you mind if my friends stay for a little bit?"

"I suppose so," Hubert answered with only a small crease of his brows, which was a good sign. After two months of living together, Ferdinand had learned to measure Hubert's mood according to how deep his frowns were. Ranking from the deepest frown along with a murderous glare - meaning you should run for your life - to a slight dip - he just had his coffee and a good night's sleep.

"Guys, this is Hubert, my landlord." Ferdinand introduced, winking at the black-haired man. "Hubert, these are my classmates, Caspar, Linhardt, and my best friend, Dorothea."

Hubert's visible eye scanned the bunch of them, from Dorothea to Caspar, and lastly Linhadt before simply nodding his head and retreating inside.

"Well, you're not exaggerating when you said he was a man of few words." Dorothea pouted.

"Please, Thea." Ferdinand begged, side-glaring her with a 'Don't make fun of the poor man' look, to which she winked back.

"So, Ferdinand said that you're that famous writer H.V, something right?" Caspar asked, leisurely sitting in his seat with his legs crossed together, "What does the V mean?"

Hubert looked up from his coffee, pausing a little before replying in a monotone voice, "That is private information I do not wish to share."

 _Way the go, Caspar_ , Ferdinand thought. Hubert's brows had deepened, indicating the man was starting to feel annoyed.

"Forgive Caspar, Mr. V." Linhardt said beside Caspar, nudging his blue-haired lover with a skinny elbow, "He still needs to work on his manners."

"Linhardt, that hurts!"

"Please pardon my friend," Dorothea came to the rescue."So, Hubert isn't it? Can I call you Hubie?"

"I don't mind," Hubert replied, eyeing the brunette from his usual seat - a black leather sofa standing alone in the corner, far away from the guest couch.

"That's wonderful. Anything you want to know about Ferdie? I have all the juicy stories about him." Dorothea seemed pleased with Hubert's answer.

"What? Thea, don’t!" Ferdinand yelled, stopping halfway to the kitchen to fetch them some snacks and drinks.

"Well, too late, Ferdie. Did you know we used to date back in high school?" Dorothea giggled, "Well, we kissed too and that was the last time I kissed a boy. I prefer girls better."

Hubert's movement ceased, the hand holding his cup tightened around the handle. With a barely audible whisper, Hubert replied, "Is that so?"

 _Good Goddess!_ Hubert's mood had turned bad, thanks to Dorothea.

"Dorothea!" Ferdinand hissed through gritted teeth, having sat back to his position beside his bigmouthed friend, "That's a long time ago. Please don't bring it up again."

"Well, if you’re so inclined." She winked at him with a totally innocent expression.

"If you excuse me," Hubert stood up abruptly, "I need to get back to my writing."

And there he went, under the disappointed look of Ferdinand, up the staircase and back to his hideout.

For once, Ferdinand considered ending his friendship with Dorothea.

\--

"Hubert, can we talk?" Ferdinand found himself knocking on his landlord's door a while later after he had sent his meddling friends on their ways.

_“He was jealous of me, Ferdie. That’s a good sign. He IS so into you.” Dorothea whispered to him the moment he was about to kick her out of the door._

_“Or he just started to dislike me. Thank you so much.” Ferdinand said through gritted teeth as he slammed the door right in front of his friend’s face._

Ferdinand wasn’t even surprised when the answer to his knocking was nothing but the creaking sound of the floor he was standing on. 

The silence started to eat him up from the inside. The moment Ferdinand desperately turned his heels and slowly walked back to his room, the door to Hubert's room slammed open.

"Hubert" Ferdinand immediately grabbed the man's sleeve, voice almost sounding like a plea, "Believe me when I say there's nothing between me and Thea. Not anymore."

"Why are you saying this to me?" Hubert snapped, "Who you dated and what you did to them is none of my concern."

"No, You do care." Ferdinand objected fiercely, "Don't lie to me. I see the way you look at her when she said that...and the way you look at me."

"How do I look at you?" Hubert breathed hardly, eye focus on the movement of Ferdinand's lips.

"Like you want to ravish me!" Ferdinand said boldly.

In the next second, two strong arms slammed him against the wall, lips clashing his lips and body pressing against his body. Ferdinand parted his lips immediately, and he let out a moan as Hubert's tongue slipped inside without hesitation. Ferdinand loved the taste of coffee on the man's tongue. He might develop a liking for this kind of drink if they kissed a few times more. Ferdinand wrapped his arms around the taller man, exploring the warm flesh of the man he craved for months. Hubert's hands did the same, one moment they were stroking his hair and in the next, Ferdinand felt the press of one large palm against his ass.

"Um...Hubert..." Ferdinand moaned Hubert's name between a series of breathtaking kisses.

But to his surprise, _and_ sexual frustration, Hubert stopped himself from indulging further into their addictive kisses.

With a loud pop of their mouths parting, Hubert broke away from Ferdinand. A look of utter surprise painted his handsome face, which quickly turned into sorrow and regret by the seconds.

"Hubert, why..." Ferdinand would be lying if he said he was not hurt by the man's rejection. No, his heart was bleeding.

"Ferdinand. I'm sorry. I can't." Hubert avoided Ferdinand's hurtful gaze, his voice trembling, "You should keep your distance from me.”

"Tell me why!" Ferdinand screamed angrily, hands reaching out to grab the helm of Hubert's white shirt but the taller man quickly backed away from his touch.

"It was a mistake." Hubert whispered, more to himself than to Ferdinand, "I should not let you into my life."

"Hubert..."

"Ferdinand, please. Whatever you do, do not fall for me. I do not deserve something as beautiful as you." Hubert said with a broken expression. 

Ferdinand felt a ghost of a warm hand on his cheek before Hubert frantically retreated into his room with a loud thud, leaving Ferdinand alone in the empty hallway with nothing but the cold night air creeping inside his heart.

—

Ferdinand spent the entirety of that night trying to prevent his tears to fall but all in vain. By the time sleep washed over his exhausted mind and aching heart, the pillow under his head was already drenched with his stubborn tears. Ferdinand closed his eyes, hoping everything was only a dream when he woke up.

Ferdinand faintly heard, as his mind slowly drifted into the land of dreams, Hubert's angry voice echoing through the hallways.

"NO! You are not allowed to lay a hand on him! I won't let you harm a single hair on his head! Not while I'm still breathing! You hear me!"

_Hubert?_

But darkness already took over him completely.

\--

If Ferdinand's heart was not broken enough from Hubert's rejection yesterday, then the fact that he found out the aforementioned man literally disappeared the next day shattered it utterly.

Hubert was gone. Gone as in vanish into thin air.

Ferdinand first thought the man only hide in his room like usual so he forced a smile on his face, with a tray of food in hands, and knocked on Hubert's door with a feeble hope that he could wring the answer out of Hubert. But to his horror, Hubert's room was empty. No sight of the gloomy man could be seen, not here, not anywhere. And the mere thought that the reason for Hubert's disappearance was because Ferdinand had overstepped the boundary established between them the moment he moved in this house, that Ferdinand had destroyed the hard-won camaraderie - a blooming friendship between him and the mystery man - with his own carnal desire.

Now the man had fled from him as the result of his foolishness, his impatience that caused someone as withdrawn as Hubert afraid of an unexpected passion.

He should have waited a little bit more.

Ferdinand brought this self-accusation with him through the over-enduring lectures and long hours at work. 

\--

Ferdinand dragged his overworked body back to the shared house of him and Hubert. For over two months, he had made this place his home, his time with Hubert was tense sometimes but overall, he enjoyed every moment he spent with the brooding man. 

But it seemed like everything would be ending soon.

Ferdinand opened the door to Hubert's house with something akin to boulders pressing heavily in his heart.

But once he saw the light in the living room, Ferdinand felt his heart speed up in his chest. He would be lying if he said he was not terrified of seeing Hubert again after last night, but the joy to know that Hubert had returned, that the man was not ashamed of having him in his house and come back to him had overwhelmed his other senses.

"Hubert!" Ferdinand called the man's name, but no one answered.

Brows knitting into a worried frown, Ferdinand slowly scanned the house for other hints of Hubert's whereabouts.

There was light in Hubert’s bedroom. 

Biting his lips lightly, Ferdinand ascended the staircase one step at a time and with all the carefulness he could muster, Ferdinand called again, "Hubert, is that you?"

Answering him was the sound of his breathing. Ferdinand let out a groan as he quickened his steps.

Once he was at the door, Ferdinand twisted it open without knocking and slipped inside. With a deep breath, Ferdinand disturbed the silence upon entering the room, "Look. I know I overstepped yesterday but can you at least tell me the reason why you rejected me..."

Ferdinand swallowed the rest of his words as soon as he saw Hubert's figure hiding in the shadow, in the most dim-lit area of the room. 

Still wearing his usual white shirt, Hubert had his back turned against him. Tall and slim, elegant in his own way, Ferdinand took a moment to ogle Hubert's backside, a desire to hug the man from behind suddenly crossed his mind.

And Ferdinand did just that.

"Hubert?" Ferdinand called again, gentler this time. His hands hesitate reached out and with a gulp, he placed it on Hubert's lower back. Ferdinand let out a hum as how warm Hubert's skin was under his touch.

A low chuckle filled the air as Hubert's body vibrated under his palm. Curiosity filled him as Ferdinand dared to travel his hand over the length of Hubert's spine, admiring the curve of his back. 

But Hubert's voice dragged him out of his stupor. 

It was Hubert's voice no doubt but it was deeper and somehow darker than usual, "How brazen. Now I know why 'he' is so enamored of you"

Ferdinand withdrew his hand immediately as the instinct telling him to run away rang in his ears , but still he stayed rooted on the ground, watching Hubert slowly reveal himself under the dim light.

First to hit Ferdinand's peripheral vision was the mop of familiar black hair, long curly bangs covering half of his face, which only awakened Ferdinand's desire to brush them aside and finally have both of those gorgeous eyes staring at him. But as the other half of Hubert's face gradually reshaped itself in the dimness of his bedroom’s light, Ferdinand inhaled sharply.

It was still the dear face of Hubert and his visible peridot-colored eye was still the same but the unfamiliar glint inside it - vicious like that of a snake or a predator staring down at his prey, ready to lunge in and tear him apart - was too bizarre to him that made Ferdinand shiver lightly.

To add to Ferdinand's confusion, there were droplets of half-dried blood from Hubert's forehead down to his sharp cheekbones, to his cheeks and finally on the collar of his opened white shirt, which was already drenched with a fair amount of blood.

The person standing in front of him was indeed his landlord, but his demeanor was completely different.

"Who are you?" Ferdinand asked, straightening his posture.

"Can't you see. I am Hubert." The man with Hubert's face answered, smirking.

"No, you are not. What have you done to Hubert?" Ferdinand yelled, "Answer me!"

"Ah, he even dares to make demands. You are not like others, I give you that. They often flee upon seeing me." 'Hubert' wickedly laughed.

No, to be honest, Ferdinand was terrified, enough that he couldn't stop himself from shaking, but he willed his body and demanded again, needing to know what happened to the real Hubert, "Tell me whose blood that is!"

'Hubert' regarded him with a glint of excitement in his eye and cooed, finger point at the blood in his face, "Do not fret. Your Hubert is fine. This is only the blood from my latest victim."

"Victim?" Ferdinand stuttered.

The man who bore the face of his landlord slowly walked out of the shadow, finally revealing himself fully under the light and raised his hand. Ferdinand mindlessly took a step back once his gaze landed on the black-gloved fingers wrapped around a knife, still dripping with blood.

A low chuckle, "Yes, victim. As in the target the clients wanted me to eliminate, for a price of course." 

"What are you talking about?"

"Fufufu. Have you ever wondered what the V in my name stands for?" 'Hubert' asked, tilting his head to aside.

Ferdinand could do nothing but shaking his head, mouth formed a thin line.

"V is short for Vestra. Surely, someone raises in the Aegir family must have heard of that name."

"Vestra...the Assassin family?"

"Yes, the Vestra live to kill in the dark for generations. And I, Hubert Vestra, am the next in line to take over that family." 'Hubert' answered, raising both of his hands in the air.

"You're lying." Ferdinand yelled, "Hubert is not a killer...he is...where is he?"

"He is me as I am he." The man said in a low voice, eye glinting with malice, "They created me out of him, to do the task that 'he' is too cowardly to complete. I am to kill for him. They call me 'Vestra'. I am another Hubert, I live inside him, sharing the same body as him, seeing what he sees. I sleep most of the time as he tries to suppress my existence but when the Vestra gives out the orders, I resurface to carry out the mission."

Ferdinand stared at the man calling himself 'Vestra' like he was an alien, no maybe he was. The overload of information and the overbearing smell of blood, all made his head dizzy as he covered his mouth with his palm to stop himself from throwing up.

"Kukuku...I stay a little longer today because I'm curious about you." Vestra said as he closed the distance between them, "The one 'he' calls 'his sun'."

Ferdinand backed away with each step 'Vestra' made towards him.

"It is not fair that only 'he' get to spend time with a creature as exquisite as yourself."

"You fiend!" Ferdinand mustered his wills to scream at the other Hubert, "Give me back my Hubert!"

"Oh, don't worry, beautiful, he will be back. But first..."

Before Ferdinand could react, a pair of strong arms pulled him into a warm embrace as Hubert's familiar face suddenly magnified within his peripheral vision. Ferdinand shivered as hot breath hovered over his skin and Hubert's voice filled his ear, "Let me have a taste of you too."

And the pair of lips Ferdinand craved for so long suddenly pressed against his own. But unlike the gentleness Hubert showed him last night, these same lips were now kissing him as if they wanted to devour him completely. Teeth and tongue eagerly parted Ferdinand's lips open and once it got inside his cavern, that tongue wasted no time to coax his own into a dance of domination.

Ferdinand let out a moan as his mouth was being ravished by a more passionate, aggressive Hubert. He felt gloved hand cradling the side of his face and long fingers stroking his hair. Ferdinand tasted Hubert's usual coffee on his tongue, just like last night, but along with it was the copper-like flavor of blood. And blood was all he smelled from the man above him, not the usual perfume that Hubert always wore. Only when his mind started to work again. Mustering the last of his strength, Ferdinand pushed the man with Hubert’s face away.

"Get off me," Ferdinand mumbled breathlessly, face still red from the kiss.

But the hands around him had not withdrawn. ‘Vestra’ gave him a mysterious look before placing his gloved hand over Ferdinand's mouth and within seconds, he felt his eyelids started to droop low.

"It looks like I made 'him' angry with that kiss. Too bad I have to go now but I'll be back for you, Beautiful."

As his consciousness slipping away, Ferdinand felt a press of soft lips against his own before the sleep took over him completely.

\--

Bonus pictures by the talented @Medishurahan on Twitter

Nerd!Hubert

Psycho!Hubert

Ferdie and his two Hubies :3

**Author's Note:**

> Their first meeting scene is based on Netflix movie "Home Is Where The Killer Is" XP


End file.
